How to Host a QANGA Dedicated Server (Custom Server Guide)

To host a QANGA dedicated server, install the free server with SteamCMD (app 1652070), start QangaServer-Linux-Shipping with the universe map, a session name and your game and query ports, open those ports, and look for your session name in the in game server list. Update it after every patch, because QANGA is in early access and the client refuses servers on a different version.

How QANGA multiplayer works

QANGA, iolaCorp Studio's sci fi survival game, has been in early access since September 2024. Its multiplayer is server based: the developers run official servers, and anyone can run a custom server with their own rules and crowd. There is no "host from the main menu" button for friends, so a custom server is the way a group gets a world of its own. The QANGA multiplayer explainer covers the difference between official and custom servers, PvE and PvP in more depth.

Be ready for change. In 2026 alone the game moved to Unreal Engine 5.7 (June), got a rebuilt AI and combat system (July) and a module system and UI overhaul (September). A custom server means following those updates.

QANGA cyborg on a planet surface

What you need

A Linux machine that can stay on.
Memory: about 8 GB for a few friends. QANGA is an Unreal Engine 5 game with a whole solar system, and a busy public or PvP server wants 12 GB or more.
SteamCMD.
Ports you can open on the router or firewall.

Step 1: Install with SteamCMD

The server is a separate free download. You do not need to own the game on the server machine:

steamcmd +force_install_dir /home/qanga/server +login anonymous +app_update 1652070 validate +quit

Run the same line after every QANGA patch, before starting the server.

Right after the June 2026 engine update, Linux servers briefly needed a manual steamclient.so copy to register with the master server. Since hotfix v0.0.21b (June 2026) the Linux server ships the right Steam file itself, so a current install shows up in the browser without hand editing. If you follow an older guide that tells you to copy that file, you can skip it.

Step 2: Start the server

On Linux the binary is Qanga/Binaries/Linux/QangaServer-Linux-Shipping. A working launch line:

./Qanga/Binaries/Linux/QangaServer-Linux-Shipping Qanga /Game/Maps/Universe/L_Persistent_Universe? -server -log -port=7777 -map=L_Persistent_Universe -sessionName="Orbit Crew" -QueryPort=27016

Part	What it does
`/Game/Maps/Universe/L_Persistent_Universe` and `-map`	The persistent universe map, the normal world
`-sessionName`	Name in the server list. Keep it 5 to 25 characters and distinctive
`-port`	Game port
`-QueryPort`	Steam query port, used for the server list
`-log`	Prints the log to the console

Startup on a fresh install or after an update takes a while. On recent builds the console reports the Steam sockets address once the server is ready.

Step 3: Open the ports

Forward the game port and the query port (UDP) to the server and allow them in the firewall. Without the query port the server can run and still be missing from the list. Our port forwarding guide covers the router side. If you run two servers on one machine, give each its own ports. Saves are tied to the server's port on current builds (a v0.0.23a fix stopped saves mixing between servers on different ports), so keep a server's port stable or its world can look like it vanished.

Step 4: Join

Launch QANGA on Steam.
Open the online server list from the main menu.
Search for your session name.
Select it and join.

The client checks its version against the server's. If they differ, players are told to update, or the server is filtered out of their list. That is the most common problem with QANGA servers, covered in our QANGA version mismatch fix.

Step 5: Protect the world

Early access updates can change saves. Before restarting into any big patch:

Stop the server.
Copy the server's Saved folder somewhere safe.
Update and start again.

If the update breaks the world, you can roll back the server files and the save together. Read the patch notes on Steam before major updates: the developers say when a change touches saves.

QANGA ship flying between planets

Running it long term

QANGA patches often, and every patch is a stop, update, back up, start routine before your group can play again. The server also wants a fair amount of memory and a machine that is on whenever someone in the crew wants to play. That combination is where most home hosted QANGA servers fade out.

Hosting with GamezServers

A QANGA server from GamezServers runs the official dedicated server with Map, Session Name and Auto Update in the panel. Auto update pulls the new build every time the server starts, so after a patch a restart is all it takes. Ports are assigned for you and the server has its own address. Take a one click backup before big updates, and use the file manager to reach saves and config files. Plans start at 8 GB for a small crew, and Sleep when empty can stop a quiet server after 4 days alone and wake it with one click.

FAQ

What is the QANGA dedicated server app ID?

It installs anonymously through SteamCMD. The game itself is a separate app that each player needs.

Do I need to own QANGA to run a server?

No. The server is a free download. Players need their own copy of QANGA to join.

Can I host QANGA from my game without a server?

Multiplayer runs on servers: official ones from the developers or custom servers like this one.

Why can't my friends see my QANGA server?

Usually a version mismatch after a patch, a blocked query port, or a server still starting. Update, check the port and wait for the console to finish.